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#100DaysOfHopper Day 46

Day 46: With summer in full swing, I hope all of you able bodied friends take full advantage of what's out there. Especially those of you with kids.

Without beating the drum for my own personal pity party, I'm asking you all not to take your ability to enjoy life for granted. Physical limitations not only deprive the body, but they wear on the mind. People who are lucky enough to only read my banter and not have to deal with me in the physical world, might not realize that things aren't as they once were. No longer am I the chiseled Adonis you once knew, but a doughy , limp-legged, much larger shell of my former self. Think of Humpty Dumpty with a lot more yolks and a lot more jokes.

I currently sit in ithaca, enjoying the serenity, but surrounded by paths, waterfalls and swimming holes, I don't get to enjoy. Wineries, farms and markets, that I'd love to.peruse, but pain ruins their wonders. A bustling little city, praised for its activism, community on greenness. It's all right there, but it's not.

You have so much to explore and the ability to so. I think of all the things, I took for granted and haven't seen or haven't revisited. Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty or the Hayden Planetarium. The American Museum of Natural History, the Brooklyn Bridge or Coney Island. The Brooklyn Promenade, the Botanical Gardens or the Bronx Zoo. Trails, lakes and parks. Simple pleasures like a pizza at Roberta's, a cone from Ample Hills or the lamb Ragu at Frankie's 457. Or for my Westchester friends, a slow walk to the duck pond, traipsing down the Bronx River Pathway, maybe a a jolt from a delicious cup at Slave to the grind or a burger at Pete's. A drive to Larchmont and stroll scenic manor park, stopping at Walter's or Sherwood's before home.

Maybe it's as simple as hitting a ball or shooting jumpers, sitting crossed legged or sprawled out under a shady tree sharing a meal. Climbing a mini mountain like Breakneck Point or taking a night cruise from New Rochelle.

So many I still can do, but the ones that require physicality are memories. I wish I could grab my friends kids and start a game of baseball or chase them on bikes. I wish I could take them or friends, to the places my parents, friends and older cousins took me. The simple pleasure of taking a walk, gazing at birds and fish and stopping out for ice cream before the long walk back are not possible any longer.

Had I known two decades ago that my once solid legs would become my biggest hindrance, I'd have done more. Had I known a year ago, the simple pleasures brought on by a midnight walk to clear my head, would become a pain inducing laborious task, I'd have stayed out longer. If I'd known all that surrounds me and always had, might one day not be "right there," I'd have done more.

I implore you all, especially those with children, to negate future the possibility of regret and get out there and see our little unique world. The one tourists travel to see and we call our backyard. Don't ever assume it will always be there, because while it may stand strong, there might come a day when you do not. #100DaysOfHopper


 Day 46 Part 2: Why do people post things without follow ups? I mean if you find it necessary to tell people you're going to CVS, I damn well want to hear what you bought, how crowded it was and of course, what strange creatures were there. It seems this need to let us know your whereabouts was important enough, well I demand closure.

Taking the kids to zoo! Well, let's hear it. I want to hear how everyone elses kids are one step to the left on the evolutionary chart and your little angels built a shack for a homeless meerkat family to live in. I mean, just stating you are going someplace only counts when it is some tropical island resort and you want all your poor friends to stew in their frothy juices for a week.

Seriously, people really need to come full circle. If you state you're going to bed, I want that first post to be "I'm up." This way, I know if you've had enough sleep or not and whether and how to gauge your posts throughout the day. I mean, look at those happy people who do yoga all the time. They state they are doing yoga and then it's post after post bitching about every little hiccup life throws at them. I want to know what kind of yoga this is, so I can steer clear. My friends who state they need a drink seem like a happy go lucky bunch, but they also don't post that often, because they pass out by 8:30 watching reruns of the Big Bang Theory and 90210.

People really need to step up their game, because if you don't know that everyone hangs on every word, then you don't understand Facebook. I'm gonna go blow my nose now. #100DaysOfHopper It was clear, phew!

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